If you are one of the many millions of men around the world suffering from male impotence, known as ‘erectile dysfunction’, your first ‘port of call’ for an effective treatment option may possibly be Pfizer’s Viagra. With its moniker of ‘the little blue pill’, Viagra (Sildenafil) was discovered to have erection boosting qualities purely by chance following clinical trials on patients with high blood pressure. On March 27, 1998, Viagra became the first oral treatment approved to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) in the United States and since then it has gone on to become a massive global success. This is because of its potency and fantastic ability to actually be effective at the condition it claims to help. It is almost automatically affiliated with male impotence these days by some men who are suffering with sexual dysfunction.

However, should this be the case? It may come as a surprise but there are in fact there are other options available to men, such as the Eli Lilly’s Cialis (Tadalafil), which is rapidly making a name for itself as ‘The Weekend Pill’. This is because the people behind Cialis claim that it is superior to Viagra as its erection-boosting qualities can last much longer – up to 36 hours in some cases, in comparison to Viagra’s usual effectiveness of four to five hours. If this wasn’t enough, Cialis usually gets to work faster than Viagra and some men have reported effects beginning from as little as just 15 minutes!

Like Pfizer’s Viagra, and Bayer’s Levitra (another popular impotence medication), Cialis belongs to a class of drugs known as a ‘Phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE-5) inhibitor’. All three PDE-5 inhibitors work in a similar way in that there has to be some sexual stimulation for the medication to be effective. This obviously means that Cialis will not give you an erection as soon as you take the yellow tear drop shaped pill, but instead will work wonders at relaxing the penile arteries during foreplay, allowing blood to flow to the penis and help to achieve an erection.

For several years, Viagra was the one and only option for men with erectile dysfunction. This was until 2003 when Bayer and Eli Lilly received Food and Drug Administration approval for Vardenafil (as Levitra) and Tadalafil (as Cialis) respectively, to treat ED. There are probably many men though who associate Viagra as the only choice for them and this may be due to the fact it was the first treatment to become popular, many years prior to Cialis. It is worth bearing in mind though that Cialis does have some advantageous factors to certain patients. In addition, in recent years sales of Cialis have rapidly soared as more and more men are becoming aware of its prowess in the battle against impotence and it has moved out of Viagra’s shadow to become massive in its own right. So big in fact that Cialis has sponsored numerous golf events, including the America’s Cup and the PGA Tour, and was once able to boast being the title sponsor of the PGA Tour Western Open tournament.

Both the 10mg and 20mg Cialis are believed to be effective for 36 hours, hence the ‘weekender’ nickname it has earned over the years. Because of this time-frame it can work during, theoretically men can go for two days without being required to take another pill – specifically benefiting those who do not wish to directly associate taking a pill with having sex.

This is also where ‘Cialis Daily’ comes into the equation. The slightly lower dose 2.5mg and 5mg versions of Cialis are in fact the only European Commission-approved ED treatments designed as a single daily therapy – taken approximately the same time each day for consistency. The lower strength versions of Cialis are particularly ideally for men in sexually active long-term relationships. Beneficial in that the mild dose will be in your body each day, it means you do not have to take a tablet each time you have sex. Your body should begin to adjust to the medication’s ingredients and resulting in very little side effects, if any.

Medical Specialists Pharmacy understands the decision about which ED medication is right for you can sometimes be a little difficult. This is why we have previously created a side-by-side comparison of Cialis, Cialis Daily, Viagra, Levitra and Levitra ODT, which we hope will provide more insight regarding the similarities and differences between them.

All are available today from Medical Specialists at low prices – obtainable with or without a prescription. If you do not have a prescription, you can undergo a private and confidential online consultation with one of our GMC-registered Doctors and if suitable, they will write you a prescription. This is passed to our in-house RPSGB-registered Pharmacists, dispensed and then dispatched to you. This can be at your home, your place of work, or where ever you choose, discreetly within 24 hours.